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Big Ten Title Battle Wages on in Week 7
Oct. 13, 2006
Minnesota (2-4, 0-3 Big Ten) at #25 Wisconsin (5-1, 2-1 Big Ten) After creeping into the national rankings at No. 25, Wisconsin hosts Minnesota on Saturday in the 116th version of their rivalry. The Badgers picked up their second conference win behind a dominating performance from redshirt freshman P.J. Hill. The nation's fifth-best tailback, Hill racked up a season-high 249 yards to propel Wisconsin to a 41-9 victory over Northwestern last weekend. The Badgers defense has also been fierce this season, surrendering a mere 12.8 points per game, a total that ranks second in the conference and 13th in the country. Looking to snap a three-game losing streak, the Gophers will have to find a way to contain Hill on Saturday. Minnesota's rushing defense has allowed 164.3 yards per contest this season. The Gophers are coming off a 28-27 overtime setback to Penn State from last weekend. Senior QB Bryan Cupito is closing in on 6,000 career passing yards and 400 career completions. He threw for 347 yards and two touchdowns against Penn State. Logan Payne is making his case to be Cupito's favorite target. The senior wide out earned his fifth consecutive six-reception game against the Nittany Lions. Payne had 94 yards on his six catches against Penn State after snagging 104 yards and two touchdowns against Michigan a week earlier. The Gophers' Mike Sherels picked up Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week honors after collecting a career-best 15 tackles and three tackles for loss while adding a pass breakup against the Nittany Lions. The junior linebacker registered nine solo stops in the game for the third double-digit tackle performance of his career. In last year's clash, the Badgers scored two touchdowns in the final two minutes for a sensational, come-from-behind victory with a final of 38-34. The battle for the Paul Bunyan Axe, which has been awarded to the winner every year since 1948, kicks off at 11 a.m. CT on ESPN. Purdue (4-2, 1-1 Big Ten) at Northwestern (2-4, 0-2 Big Ten) 11:00 a.m. CT, ESPN Plus Evanston, Ill. - Ryan Field Series: Purdue leads 47-25-1; Last Meeting: 2005 - Northwestern 34, Purdue 29 Returning home for the first time in four games, the Northwestern Wildcats host another well-traveled unit in Purdue on Saturday at Ryan Field. The Wildcats look for their first conference victory this year after opening the Big Ten slate with losses at Penn State and Wisconsin. The Boilermakers, who are playing their third straight road game this week, opened the year with four victories - all of them at home - before a pair of setbacks against two top-20 teams in Notre Dame (35-21) and Iowa (47-14). The Boilermaker defense is led by defensive end Anthony Spencer, 14.5 tackles for loss rank second nationally. He has 50 tackles overall and three forced fumbles. Splitting time at quarterback for the Wildcats are redshirt freshmen Andrew Brewer and Mike Kafka. Brewer led Northwestern against the Badgers last weekend, completing 10 of 24 passes for 94 yards and one scoring throw. Sophomore running back Terrell Sutton owns the team's best all-purpose production, generating nearly 80 yards per outing and four touchdowns on the year. Leading the Wildcats' defense, Nick Roach has made 49 stops and two sacks this year. Kickoff is set for 11 a.m. CT and can be seen on ESPN Plus. #15/13 Iowa (5-1, 2-1 Big Ten) at Indiana (3-3, 1-1 Big Ten) 12:00 p.m. ET, ESPN2 Bloomington, Ind. - Memorial Stadium Series: Iowa leads 38-25-4; Last Meeting: 2005 - Iowa 38, Indiana 21 Iowa travels to Indiana this weekend after a statement Big Ten victory last weekend. The 15th-ranked Hawkeyes responded from their first loss of the season against top-ranked Ohio State with a 47-17 over Purdue last week. Senior quarterback Drew Tate is second in the league, averaging 237.8 yards per game and has compiled 10 touchdowns this season. He tossed two touchdowns against the Boilermakers. Senior Scott Chandler is Tate's most reliable target, leading Iowa with 24 receptions for 263 yards and three scores. Starting in place of the injured Albert Young, Damian Sims rushed for a career-high 155 yards and two scores. The Hawkeyes' defense ranks fifth in the league and is holding opponents to 16.5 points per outing behind junior linebacker Mike Klinkenborg's Big Ten-leading 66 tackles. Sophomore defensive lineman Mitch King is right behind him with 5.5 sacks, the second-most in the conference. Indiana returns to Memorial Stadium after earning its first Big Ten win of the season with a thrilling come-from-behind triumph over Illinois last week. Austin Starr's 33-yard field goal as time expired gave the Hoosiers a 34-32 victory on the road. In the win, sophomore Marcus Thigpen earned Big Ten Special Teams Player of the Week accolades for his third touchdown on a kickoff return this year. He finished with a school-record 197 yards on kickoff returns, 91 yards rushing and 23 receiving yards. His 311 all-purpose yards also mark the fourth-best single-game total in Hoosier history. Redshirt freshman quarterback Kellen Lewis piloted the Hoosiers' comeback from a 25-7 second-quarter deficit with 20-for-39 passing and 240 yards en route to Indiana's third win of the season. The Hakweyes look for their fourth straight win in the series on Saturday at noon ET. All the action can be seen on ESPN2.
#1 Ohio State (6-0, 2-0 Big Ten) at Michigan State (3-3, 0-2 Big Ten) When Ohio State and Michigan State met last year in Columbus, the Buckeyes rallied from an early 10-point deficit to secure a victory that jump-started their current 13-game winning streak - the longest in the nation. The top-ranked Buckeyes look to stretch that mark to 14-straight victories when the teams clash again on Saturday in East Lansing. Ohio State returns to Big Ten play after a 35-7 win over Bowling Green last week. Troy Smith threw for three touchdowns and Antonio Pittman ran for two more in the victory. Smith completed 17-of-20 passes for 191 yards, while connecting with Ted Ginn Jr. for a career-high 10 grabs. The Ohio State defense leads the nation in scoring defense, yielding just 56 points this season. The unit has already made more interceptions (12) and takeaways than it did all of last year - moves that have reaped 59 points for the Buckeye offense. The Spartans are looking to break up a three-game losing skid after dropping 31-13 on the road to rival Michigan last week. Drew Stanton recorded his 17th career 200-yard passing game against then-sixth-ranked Michigan, completing 20-of-35 throws for 252 yards. The 6-3, 230-pound QB accounted for 276 total yards against the Wolverines, adding 24 yards on seven carries including a 2-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter. Wide receiver Matt Trannon, who suffered a sprained ankle in the setback, will not play against the Buckeyes. The two teams collide at 3:30 p.m. ET on ABC. Ohio (3-3, 2-1 MAC) at Illinois (2-4, 1-2 Big Ten) 6:00 p.m. CT, ESPN360 Champaign, Ill. - Memorial Stadium Series: Tied at 2; Last Meeting: 1950 - Illinois 28, Ohio 2 Illinois ventures outside of conference competition this weekend when it hosts the Mid-American Conference foe Ohio. This week's game marks fifth meeting between the Illini and the Bobcats and the first meeting in 56 years. The Illini are looking to rebound from a last-second loss to Indiana last weekend. A field goal from Indiana's Austin Starr as time expired gave the Hoosiers a 34-32 victory. The Illini ran for 209 yards in the setback, led by Pierre Thomas' 126-yard effort. True freshman quarterback Isiah "Juice" Williams accounted for 243 yards of total offense, running for 53 yards on 10 carries and throwing for 190 and two scores, while Kyle Hudson made three grabs for 92 yards and two touchdowns. Defensively, J Leman led the unit with 10 tackles, including half a sack. Leman ranks second in the Big Ten in stops this season with 65 tackles. The Bobcats are coming off a 27-20 win against Western Michigan. Ohio ran for a season-high 257 yards, including 120 and two touchdowns by junior Kalvin McRae. On defense, senior Tyler Russ led the way with 12 tackles and his second interception of the season. The unit allowed the Broncos only 103 yards rushing on 35 attempts. Freshman Chris Garrett leads the NCAA in punt returns, averaging 25.9 yards on nine returns this season. He claimed the top spot after posting 97 yards on two returns, including a school-record 88-yard touchdown, against Western Michigan. Garrett's 88-yard score is the nation's longest punt return this season. #4 Michigan (6-0, 3-0 Big Ten) at Penn State (4-2, 2-1 Big Ten) 8:00 p.m. ET, ABC State College, Pa. - Beaver Stadium Series: Michigan leads 8-3; Last Meeting: 2005 - Michigan 27, Penn State 25 The Penn State Nittany Lions will get their shot at avenging a loss that kept them from a perfect 2005 season when they collide with fourth-ranked Michigan on Saturday night. In last year's primetime matchup, the Wolverines' last drive gave them a 27-25 upset of then-No. 8 Penn State. The loss also ended the Nittany Lions' hopes of perfect season and sole possession of the Big Ten crown. Mario Manningham - then a rookie wide receiver for the Wolverines - snagged a last-second scoring catch to secure Michigan's victory in 2005. But the star wideout, who leads the nation with nine touchdown grabs, will miss this season's meeting between the two teams with a knee injury. The Nittany Lions, who have won 11 straight games at Beaver Stadium, return home after a thrilling overtime victory at Minnesota last weekend. Penn State fell behind early, led most of the second half and saw host Minnesota score late to tie the game before claiming a 28-27 win. The Nittany Lions earned their first road win of the season and improved to 2-3 in overtime. Tony Hunt ran for 144 yards and two touchdowns and made his first career touchdown catch, while Anthony Morelli was 20 of 34 for 281 yards and two scores for the Lions. Hunt and Nittany Lions face a Michigan squad that tops the nation in rushing defense. The Wolverines have allowed only 40.3 yards per game. After a 31-13 victory over in-state rival Michigan State last week, the Wolverines make their first trip to Happy Valley since 2001. The Maize and Blue claimed that contest, 20-0, marking the only shutout in Beaver Stadium during Joe Paterno's 41 seasons at the helm. While senior Steve Breaston will be looking to take over in Manningham's absence, the Wolverines enter the Penn State game leading the Big Ten in rushing offense with an average of 195.67 yards per contests and nine rushing touchdowns. The rematch is set for 8 p.m. ET on ABC.
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